20 January 2015

A brief review #054 - "Game Plan"

As many of you will know, in 2010 I published The unofficial cartoon guide to He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. At 300+ pages the book features 700+ pieces of trivia, 460+ deleted scenes, 360+ examples of animation reuse, 380+ quotes, 50+ abandoned episodes, and a LOT more! It is the book that NO fan of the Filmation series can live without! BUY IT NOW!

As an incentive, here is my brief review and rating (as they appear in the book) for "Game Plan"...

This episode, which forgets all about the magic and sorcery on Eternia and instead relies on science to carry the plot, surprisingly works. Although Negator is not the greatest of villains, the threat he poses and his actions throughout the episode function to serve the script. The heroes do not really feel a part of the episode until Battle Cat and Ram Man invade Negator's lair. Once He-Man and Ram Man find themselves inside Negator's game this episode should become a typical action-adventure fare. However, due to the many interesting visuals we are treated to within the game, and the fun, highly-creative action sequences, this episode becomes incredibly gripping. 7/10